Step Into Your Journey

Feels good to be back in Cozumel. Been coming long enough it feels a bit like home away from home. Our house is off the beaten path, and we find ourselves dining among the locals in the Mom and Pop shops. It’s sunny, it’s hot and my heart is full

We took our first dives “easy,” going 67 and 66ft, respectively, for just over an hour each. Aside from the spectacular aqua life, diving brings clarity for me as more and more everything goes quiet when I am underwater.

The highlight was coming face to face with a giant, likely very old, loggerhead turtle. We locked eyes and had a moment. As if he was assuring me, “everything’s gonna be alright.” Sadly, my camera was dead so I have embedded that memory in my brain. I’ve never seen a loggerhead. It was spectacular

Live life, my friends

Yosemite weekend morning update: Huge reminder to check your gear before heading out. Despite my experience, I got complacent, and didn’t. Could have been a huge mistake had I been backpacking. Yes, we all make mistakes. We learn and move on. Absolutely a beautiful day to have a beautiful day

Training doesn’t have to be dreadful, it can also be fun. Day 1 of a Yosemite get away. Carrying 36lbs, we enjoyed an amazing display at Vernal falls despite the “Disneyland” type crowds. The water was raging as we made our way up to Nevada Falls and around past Clark point. A cozy fire, homemade dinner and good conversation capped off the day. It is, indeed, good to be alive

There’s just something replenishing about mountain air. For a change of scenery, I finally made it back to the mountains. Still a fair amount of snow which moved us from Plan A (Ralston Peak via Echo Lakes) to Plan B (Lake Aloha via Echo Lakes). Merlot had the time of her life.

Air was fresh. Scenery stunning
13 milles… 2500 feet ascent

Test runs for long treks are essential. I’m so glad I have been doing them. I have finalized my layering system, am still working on shoes, and just confirmed the pack I was going to use will not comfortably carry 36lbs. I can use it for a weekend, but no way it will work for 30 days.

It’s easy to get caught up in the “ultralight” frenzy. Cutting and eliminating to lighten the load. While I started riding that train, I’ve come to realize that at my age I have to pay some attention to comfort. I don’t know for how long my body can do these treks and if being comfortable means carrying a few more pounds, then my time is better spent preparing my body to carry a few more pounds. What works for one may not work for others. To each his own. I was thrilled to note that aside from pack discomfort, my legs felt strong with that weight.

Enjoy the journey, my friends

Sometimes the body needs a little shift to regroup, reground, and recenter. Stepping away a bit from training and just enjoyed a beautiful day with the girls

JMT meal prep continues. With 30 days on trail, the food situation is daunting. Wrapping my head around the fact that I will need significantly more calories than I currently eat daily is difficult. It just feels like so much food. I have spreadsheets and lists everywhere. I have storage containers of all shapes and sizes and almost daily I am prepping something. Sure I could buy all the food I will need already prepared. That is costly, and a big game of roulette when it comes to taste. I have spent months going through recipe books and testing various things. Doing this work gives me the opportunity to try and then modify. It also gives me the ability to adjust portions and plan to my liking. As it stands now, breakfast and lunches are a rinse and repeat pattern with about 5 different things. I found several recipes fabulous for cold soak lunches and I am stoked about that. For dinner….. I have no meal twice.

When I trek, I want a hot breakfast (although I did plan for about 5 days with protein cereal), and a sit down lunch. I have planned for a morning snack, an afternoon snack, and dessert/hot tea after dinner. Yes….. my home routine transfers to the trail.

They say I will likely lose weight……. I feel like this is so much food I will gain weight. Bottom line…. Food is fuel and I know what it feels like to bonk on trail because the fuel wasn’t there.

I am about at the end of my “to be dehydrated” list, and now I have started making individual packaging. This is all being vacuum sealed to stay fresh until my final prep and sort for resupply boxes. Stayed tuned for more on that later.

For now, I have buggies to cut and seal into smaller baggies…… yes, we are officially counting grams and the weight of unnecessary packaging adds up

This is all part of the Journey
JMT: Where Grit Meets Granite